63-55 102nd Street, Rego Park, New York 11374 (718) 830-4910

Stephen A. Halsey JHS 157

Parent Coordinator Weekly Update

Hi Halsey Family. It has been a pretty quiet week. We do have a couple of things to update you on but I would like to start by taking a look back at an amazing 5 months here at Halsey.

Our Principal Mr. Suraci has been instrumental in making sure Halsey JHS 157 and its students are engaged, prepared to tackle the challenge of education are thinking about empathy. Under his guidance we have been able to host a number of fundraisers and events to help the young people understand what empathy means – the ability to understand and share the feelings of another.

Mr. Suraci has also stressed how important school pride and being involved in extra-curricular activities can be. Along with his Assistant Principals, Guidance Counselors, Deans, Teachers, School Aides, Secretaries, Custodians, Security, and even his Parent Coordinator, Halsey has been able to achieve a lot this year and set high standards for our school community.

Here is a list of what we have accomplished and are currently hosting for the 2017-2018 school year:

We hosted a Toy Drive raising 8 large garbage bags full of unopened new toys for the Hantz Family Foundation.

We hosted a Food Drive collecting over 500 pounds of Food for the needy with City Harvest.

We are raising money for the school using Box Tops and the Shoparoo App.

Our Guidance Counselors worked with Mr. Suraci on our Respect for All week.

The PTA has worked closely with our Principal as they hosted a number of fundraisers for the school as well, including:

The Chipotle event

Candy Cane sale

Election Day Bake sale

Lemon Ice King sale

The upcoming Chocolate Heart Lollipop sale

The Spirit Wear sale which shows our school pride.

Mr. Suraci worked with Councilwoman Karen Koslowitz to get the John Lennon Educational Tour Bus back at Halsey.

Halsey has provided a number of after-school activities including

Math Team & Math Club

Debate Team & Debate Club

Robotics Team

MOUSE Squad

Peer Mediation Program

Girls Volleyball Team

Boys & Girls Basketball Teams

Cooking Club

Gingerbread House Challenge – (STEM)

Halsey Hack-A-Thons

Hosted the 2018 Martin Luther King Jr. Math Competition

Chorus and Band Concerts

Trip to see the movie Wonder

Parent Engagement Trips

Queens County Farm

One World Observatory

USS Intrepid Air, Sea, and Space Museum

Flag Football

Ballroom Dancing

College Awareness Program

Spirit Week

Halloween Party

Crazy Sweater Day

Select Chorus & Inter-Generational Choir

Jazz Band

NYS ELA & Math Test Prep

6th Grade Study Skills Program

GSA Program – Gay/Straight Alliance

AND Mr. Suraci will be chaperoning our Language Departments trip to Spain!

We are thrilled to say that we have 3 more amazing fundraisers that are about to go down. I have e-mailed everyone about them but just a quick refresher:

1. St. Jude Math-A-Thon – Our students will use math and help raise money for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
2. Leukemia & Lymphoma Society – In honor of one of our 8th grade students will be raising money to help fight cancer.
3. Coat Drive – Coats can be donated and brought in to the collection box in the lobby by the auditorium.

Throw in the daily grind of what a Principal needs to do and be on top of and we have one spectacular leader here at Halsey JHS 157…….And we still have 5 months left before the end of the school year! Nothing gets done without the guidance, support, and leadership of our Principal Mr. Suraci.

Mr. Suraci would like to introduce everyone to the Halsey JHS 157 Bulldog MASCOT!!!! He does not have a name yet but will soon when we host a Mascot Naming Contest in the Spring! Send along any suggestions your children have for names and maybe it will win!

ACCESS FOR YOUNG WOMEN – QUEENS COMMUNITY HOUSE LEADERSHIP PROGRAM FOR GIRLS AGES 12-18

Access for Young Women (AFYW) is now in its 24th
year of providing valuable leadership opportunities
to young women ages 11-18. The program has
demonstrated proven results in increasing girl’s selfesteem,
academic performance, leadership skills, and
knowledge of gender issues.

AFYW provides an intensive 30 week leadership
development curriculum that includes training in
public speaking, problem solving, goal setting and
critical thinking. The young women also address
important issues affecting their lives such as body
image, identity, global issues, relationships, and
social media. The program culminates with an
Annual Youth Leadership Conference organized and
facilitated by the young women to educate their
peers and spread awareness on issues of importance
to them.

Interested participants may apply by emailing Sarah
Faber, Leadership Coordinator at SFaber@qchnyc.org
for an application.

All coats/jackets that have been in the lost and found for over 3 weeks will be donated to the coat drive. Please have your children stop by the Lost and Found as soon as possible to check for lost coats/jackets

Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Fundraiser Update

The goal assigned to Halsey JHS 157 by the Leukemia and Lymphoma Soceity was $2,018 for the year 2018. Our fundraiser is due to begin on Monday, June 29th but we sent out all the materials and collection boxes early so we got a head start. We have already raised almost $1000!!!!!!

KUDOS go out to Mrs. Forgione’s class 603 for raising over $300 so far and major PROPS go out to Mr. Sarris’ 723 class for raising over $200 so far. We even had two 8th grade students raise over $75 just by themselves within their own building.

Those totals are just 2 classes and 2 students. I have not collected and counted over 40 boxes for this week yet. We are so proud of the students at Halsey JHS 157. Keep up the great work!

For the second straight year Mr. Suraci brought in the Peer Mediation Program in collaboration with the NYC Commission for Human Rights.

The focus of the program was to train students to be peer mediators and dispute resolution specialists, which would be a great addition to their school and community. Benefits of this program include the ability to resolve conflicts and prevent future disputes, cultivating life skills such as patience, persistence, active listening, and problem solving to increase self-esteem. By modeling effective alternatives to violence and threats, students promote greater tolerance, empathy, and understanding.

The training process consisted of eight training sessions, with a graduation ceremony on the ninth week. Upon completion students were certified as peer mediators, and will be given the opportunity to serve as mediators in Halsey, should dispute resolution situations arise. The program facilitators were Mrs. Martello and Mr. Freydin.

The ceremony was fantastic and seeing the young people displaying a sense of accomplishment and a willingness to help their fellow peers was truly a wonderful sight to see. To say we are proud of them is an understatement.

We have to give so much credit to Mr. Freydin and Mrs. Martello as they guided the students through this 9 week process. We should all be proud of Mr. Freydin & Mrs. Martello and what they helped our students accomplish.

The 2017-2018 Halsey JHS 157 Peer Mediators: Cait Dory

Samayra Diaz

Samantha Diaz

Audrey Peng

Jack Gold

Isaac Iskhakov

Nicolas Guana

Mohammad Huraira

Bryan Wang

Rami Mansi

Vivianne Bednarek

Yangzom Noga Tenzin

Tejashwi Karki

Isabella Dzhanov

Eve Yuabov

Magalis Vinas

HALSEY HISTORY

Halsey was visited by one of our retired teachers – Mr. Elliot Berkowitz. Mr. Berkowitz was a Science teacher for 33 years here at Halsey. He shared so many great stories as he toured the school and remembered me from my days here as a student.

Upcoming Events

PupilPath Parent Portal

The PupilPath parent portal lets you review your child's grades while classes are in progress; check homework assignments, projects, etc. Teachers update the portal on a regular basis. You and your child can check in on how they are doing in each class. If you have questions about a grade, you should speak with your child first. If you still have questions, send your child in to talk to their teacher (we want to teach them independence and self-advocacy). If you still have questions, contact the teacher directly.

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About

Stephen A. Halsey JHS 157 in Rego Park (Queens), NY, is dedicated to preparing its students to become productive citizens by instilling in them a love of learning through enriched standard driven curricula that incorporates cultural sensitivity and a respect for differences which will prepare them for future challenges via a committed partnership with parents and teachers.

Statement on Accessibility: We are working to make this website easier to access for people with disabilities, and will follow the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0. If you need assistance with a particular page or document on our current site, please contact P. Elfers at 718-830-4910 to request assistance.